Distributed processing network for rechargeable electric vehicle tracking and routing

ABSTRACT

A control system for a rechargeable vehicle control system, comprises: a processor and a computer readable medium, in communication with the processor, that comprises processor executable instructions. The processor executable instructions comprise: a vehicle tracker that identifies rechargeable electric vehicles currently using a transportation network and tracks a last known position in the transportation network of each rechargeable electric vehicle and a vehicle router that directs the rechargeable electric vehicles to one of plural charging segments located along the transportation routes in the transportation network to receive a charge, thereby load balancing the rechargeable electric vehicles over the plurality of charging segments.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefits of U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. Nos. 62/255,214, filed Nov. 13, 2015; 62/259,536, filedNov. 24, 2015; 62/266,452, filed Dec. 11, 2015, and 62/300/606, filedFeb. 26, 2016, each of which is entitled “Charging Transmission LineUnder Roadway for Moving Electric Vehicle” and each of which isincorporated herein by this reference in its entirety.

FIELD

The disclosure relates generally to rechargeable electric vehicles andparticularly to roadway-based charging of rechargeable electricvehicles.

BACKGROUND

Electric vehicles are widely considered an answer to global airpollution from fossil fuel vehicles. With the exception of the TeslaModel S, however, most electric vehicles cannot travel 100 miles on afull charge. Tesla buyers pay a significant premium for the largerbattery packs needed to travel longer distances. Even then, batteryvehicles typically must be recharged for hours before they're ready toroll again—something that makes a long trip a chore.

Wireless charging on roadways (known as wireless power transfer (WPT))has been proposed to address the limited travel range of electricvehicles. Wireless charging uses the following laws of physics: (a) awire carrying an electric current produces a magnetic field around thewire (Ampere's Law); (b) a coil intersecting a magnetic field produces avoltage in that coil (Faraday's Law); and (c) electromagnetic powertransfer between electrical circuits across an air gap can be achievedusing magnetic field coupling at resonance (Tesla's Law). Based on theselaws, wireless power transfer (WPT), uses a power supply providingalternating electric current in a primary charging coil embedded in aroadway to produce a time-changing magnetic field. The variable magneticfield induces an electric current (producing a magnetic field) in asecondary solenoid winding mounted under a vehicle floor. The inducedalternating current and voltage are then rectified to direct current (inan inverter) to recharge an onboard battery or other energy storagedevice. When a transmitter radio frequency magnetic field matches thereceiver frequency, the inductive power transfer (IPT) is called“magnetic resonance”.

While WPT has been effective in powering buses of known battery capacityover known routes, it has not been applied to powering electric orhybrid vehicles having different battery capacities and charge levelsover varying routes in the presence of fossil fuel-powered vehicles.

WPT has further failed to account for the variable load on eachspatially dislocated charging segment due to fluctuations in trafficflow across various roadways, such as due to day-of-week or time-of-day.

SUMMARY

These and other needs are addressed by the various aspects, embodiments,and/or configurations of the present disclosure.

A control system for a rechargeable vehicle control system can include:

a processor; and

a computer readable medium, in communication with the processor,comprising processor executable instructions comprising:

a vehicle tracker that causes the processor to identify rechargeableelectric vehicles currently using a transportation network and track alast known position in the transportation network of each rechargeableelectric vehicle; and

a vehicle router that causes the processor to direct the rechargeableelectric vehicles to one of plural charging segments located along thetransportation routes in the transportation network to receive a charge,thereby load balancing the rechargeable electric vehicles over theplurality of charging segments.

A control system for a rechargeable vehicle charging network caninclude:

a processor; and

a computer readable medium, in communication with the processor,comprising processor executable instructions comprising:

a vehicle analyzer that causes the processor (a) to communicate witheach of plural rechargeable electric vehicles to obtain informationregarding one or more of identity of the owner or operator of therechargeable electric vehicle, residence of the rechargeable electricvehicle owner or operator, utility account of the rechargeable electricvehicle owner or operator, type of the rechargeable electric vehicle,priority level of the rechargeable electric vehicle, make and/or modelof the rechargeable electric vehicle, current charge level of therechargeable energy storage of the rechargeable electric vehicle,current charging requirement of the rechargeable energy storage of therechargeable electric vehicle, destination of the rechargeable electricvehicle, purpose of the current travel of the rechargeable electricvehicle, spatial location of the rechargeable electric vehicle relativeto a selected charging segment of a plurality of charging segments, anelectronic calendar of an operator of the vehicle, a normal schedule forthe operator, and number of occupants of the rechargeable electricvehicle and (b) to determine, for each rechargeable electric vehicle,one or more of an amount of electrical charge stored by the rechargeableelectric vehicle and an amount of charge currently required by therechargeable electric vehicle; and

a vehicle router that causes the processor to direct, based on the oneor more of an amount of electrical charge stored by the rechargeableelectric vehicle and an amount of charge currently required by therechargeable electric vehicle, each of the rechargeable electricvehicles to one of the charging segments to receive a charge, therebyload balancing the rechargeable electric vehicles over the plurality ofcharging segments.

A method can include the steps:

identifying, by a processor executing a vehicle tracker, rechargeableelectric vehicles currently using a transportation network;

tracking, by the processor executing the vehicle tracker, a last knownposition in the transportation network of each of the identifiedrechargeable electric vehicles; and

directing, by the processor executing a vehicle router, the identifiedrechargeable electric vehicles to one of a plurality of chargingsegments to receive a charge, thereby load balancing the rechargeableelectric vehicles over the plurality of charging segments.

The charging segments can be positioned along transportation routes in atransportation network.

The computer readable medium can further comprise:

a grid load availability evaluator that causes a processor to determine,for a selected time interval, an amount of electrical energy from apower grid that can be used to charge rechargeable electric vehicles bythe plurality of charging segments; and

a switching fabric that can regulate, over the selected time interval,the electrical energy provided by the charging segments in accordancewith the determined amount of electrical energy from the power grid thatcan be used to charge rechargeable vehicles.

The determined amount of electrical energy from the power grid that canbe used to charge rechargeable vehicles can be dependent upon one ormore of current power consumption levels by grid users other thanrechargeable electric vehicles, historical power consumption levels byrechargeable electric vehicles and/or other grid users, and number ofrechargeable electric vehicles currently on the transportation network.

The grid load evaluator can determine a current energy usage for allgrid users, including rechargeable electric vehicles, and/or estimatefuture usage over the selected time interval for all grid users and,based on the relative priorities of different classes of grid users, seta budget for each class of grid users, the rechargeable electricvehicles being a class of grid users and the budget for each class ofgrid users being an amount of electrical energy from the power grid thatcan be used by the class of grid users over the selected time interval.

The grid load availability evaluator can determine an amount ofelectrical energy so far consumed by rechargeable electric vehicles overthe selected time interval, a number of rechargeable electric vehiclesrequesting a charge during the selected time interval, a number ofrechargeable electric vehicles that have received a charge during theselected time interval, and/or a historic amount of electrical energyconsumed by rechargeable electric vehicle charging over a historic timeinterval and estimate, based on the one or more of the amount ofelectrical energy so far consumed by rechargeable electric vehicles overthe selected time interval, number of rechargeable electric vehiclesrequesting a charge during the selected time interval, number ofrechargeable electric vehicles that have received a charge during theselected time interval, and/or historic amount of electrical energyconsumed by rechargeable electric vehicle charging over a historic timeinterval, a likely amount of power from the grid to be consumed byrechargeable electric vehicles over the remainder of the selected timeinterval.

The computer readable medium can further include a bidirectional loadbalance mechanism that estimates available power contributions fromrechargeable electric vehicles to the power grid over the selected timeinterval and provides the estimated available power contribution to thegrid load evaluator for use in determining the budgets for each class ofgrid users.

The control system can track and route REVs, thereby distributing andbalancing the load of REVs being charged more uniformly over thecharging segment network. This can not only provide higher levels ofuser satisfaction and safety (by reducing traffic levels) but alsoenable more effective and efficient operation of the power grid. It canaccount for variations in load on each spatially dislocated chargingsegment due to fluctuations in traffic flow across various roadways,such as due to day-of-week or time-of-day.

The present disclosure can provide a number of other advantagesdepending on the particular aspect, embodiment, and/or configuration.The roadway charging segments can allow rechargeable electric vehiclesto charge while in motion. This can assist drivers with rechargeableelectric vehicles in avoiding frequent stops to recharge their vehicles.The charge transfer can be highly efficient and enable drivers to remainon the road as long as he or she desires. The disclosure can provide amethod for operating the charging segment that distinguishes betweenrechargeable electric vehicles and fossil fuel vehicles and betweenrechargeable electric vehicles requiring charging and those that do notrequire charging. The charging segment can thereby be activated and emita charge only for rechargeable electric vehicles requiring a chargewhile letting all other vehicles pass over the charging segment whilethe segment is deactivated.

These and other advantages will be apparent from the disclosure.

The phrases “at least one”, “one or more”, “or”, and “and/or” areopen-ended expressions that are both conjunctive and disjunctive inoperation. For example, each of the expressions “at least one of A, Band C”, “at least one of A, B, or C”, “one or more of A, B, and C”, “oneor more of A, B, or C”, “A, B, and/or C”, and “A, B, or C” means Aalone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and Ctogether, or A, B and C together.

The term “a” or “an” entity refers to one or more of that entity. Assuch, the terms “a” (or “an”), “one or more” and “at least one” can beused interchangeably herein. It is also to be noted that the terms“comprising”, “including”, and “having” can be used interchangeably.

The term “automatic” and variations thereof, as used herein, refers toany process or operation, which is typically continuous orsemi-continuous, done without material human input when the process oroperation is performed. However, a process or operation can beautomatic, even though performance of the process or operation usesmaterial or immaterial human input, if the input is received beforeperformance of the process or operation. Human input is deemed to bematerial if such input influences how the process or operation will beperformed. Human input that consents to the performance of the processor operation is not deemed to be “material”.

The term “computer-readable medium” as used herein refers to anycomputer-readable storage and/or transmission medium that participate inproviding instructions to a processor for execution. Such acomputer-readable medium can be tangible, non-transitory, andnon-transient and take many forms, including but not limited to,non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media and includeswithout limitation random access memory (“RAM”), read only memory(“ROM”), and the like. Non-volatile media includes, for example, NVRAM,or magnetic or optical disks. Volatile media includes dynamic memory,such as main memory. Common forms of computer-readable media include,for example, a floppy disk (including without limitation a Bernoullicartridge, ZIP drive, and JAZ drive), a flexible disk, hard disk,magnetic tape or cassettes, or any other magnetic medium,magneto-optical medium, a digital video disk (such as CD-ROM), any otheroptical medium, punch cards, paper tape, any other physical medium withpatterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, and EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, a solidstate medium like a memory card, any other memory chip or cartridge, acarrier wave as described hereinafter, or any other medium from which acomputer can read. A digital file attachment to e-mail or otherself-contained information archive or set of archives is considered adistribution medium equivalent to a tangible storage medium. When thecomputer-readable media is configured as a database, it is to beunderstood that the database may be any type of database, such asrelational, hierarchical, object-oriented, and/or the like. Accordingly,the disclosure is considered to include a tangible storage medium ordistribution medium and prior art-recognized equivalents and successormedia, in which the software implementations of the present disclosureare stored. Computer-readable storage medium commonly excludes transientstorage media, particularly electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic,optical, magneto-optical signals.

A “computer readable storage medium” may be, for example, but notlimited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared,or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitablecombination of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustivelist) of the computer readable storage medium would include thefollowing: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-onlymemory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device,or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context of thisdocument, a computer readable storage medium may be any tangible mediumthat can contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may be any computer readable mediumthat is not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device. A computer readablesignal medium may convey a propagated data signal with computer readableprogram code embodied therein, for example, in baseband or as part of acarrier wave. Such a propagated signal may take any of a variety offorms, including, but not limited to, electro-magnetic, optical, or anysuitable combination thereof. Program code embodied on a computerreadable signal medium may be transmitted using any appropriate medium,including but not limited to wireless, wireline, optical fiber cable,RF, etc., or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

The terms “determine”, “calculate” and “compute,” and variationsthereof, as used herein, are used interchangeably and include any typeof methodology, process, mathematical operation or technique.

The term “electrical grid” is an interconnected network for deliveringelectricity from suppliers to consumers. It includes generating stationsthat produce electrical power, high-voltage transmission lines thatcarry power from distant sources to demand centers, and distributionlines that connect individual customers.

The term “electric vehicle” (EV), also referred to as an electric drivevehicle, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors forpropulsion. An electric vehicle may be powered through a collectorsystem by electricity from off-vehicle sources, or may be self-containedwith a battery or generator to convert fuel to electricity. An electricvehicle generally includes a rechargeable electricity storage system(RESS) (also called Full Electric Vehicles (FEV)). Power storage methodsinclude: chemical energy stored on the vehicle in on-board batteries(e.g., battery electric vehicle or BEV), on board kinetic energy storage(e.g., flywheels), and static energy (e.g., by on-board double-layercapacitors). Batteries, electric double-layer capacitors, and flywheelenergy storage are forms of rechargeable on-board electrical storage.

The term “hybrid electric vehicle” refers to a vehicle that combines aconventional (usually fossil fuel-powered) powertrain with some form ofelectric propulsion. Most hybrid electric vehicles combine aconventional internal combustion engine (ICE) propulsion system with anelectric propulsion system (hybrid vehicle drivetrain). In parallelhybrids, the ICE and the electric motor are both connected to themechanical transmission and can simultaneously transmit power to drivethe wheels, usually through a conventional transmission. In serieshybrids, only the electric motor drives the drivetrain, and a smallerICE works as a generator to power the electric motor or to recharge thebatteries. Power-split hybrids combine series and parallelcharacteristics. A full hybrid, sometimes also called a strong hybrid,is a vehicle that can run on just the engine, just the batteries, or acombination of both. A mid hybrid is a vehicle that cannot be drivensolely on its electric motor, because the electric motor does not haveenough power to propel the vehicle on its own.

The term “means” as used herein shall be given its broadest possibleinterpretation in accordance with 35 U.S.C., Section(s) 112(f) and/or112, Paragraph 6. Accordingly, a claim incorporating the term “means”shall cover all structures, materials, or acts set forth herein, and allof the equivalents thereof. Further, the structures, materials or actsand the equivalents thereof shall include all those described in thesummary, brief description of the drawings, detailed description,abstract, and claims themselves.

The term “module” as used herein refers to any known or later developedhardware, software, firmware, artificial intelligence, fuzzy logic, orcombination of hardware and software that is capable of performing thefunctionality associated with that element.

The term “rechargeable electric vehicle” or “REV” refers to a vehiclewith on board rechargeable energy storage, including electric vehiclesand hybrid electric vehicles.

The term “regenerative braking” is an energy recovery mechanism whichslows a vehicle or object by converting its kinetic energy into a formwhich can be either used immediately or stored until needed. The mostcommon form of regenerative brake involves the electric motor of anelectric vehicle as an electric generator. In battery electric andhybrid electric vehicles, the energy is commonly stored chemically in abattery, electrically in a bank of capacitors, or mechanically in arotating flywheel. Hydraulic hybrid vehicles can use hydraulic motors tostore energy in the form of compressed air.

The term “satellite-based positioning system” refers to is a space-basednavigation system that provides location and time information in allweather conditions, anywhere on or near the Earth where there is anunobstructed line of sight to four or more satellites. Examples includethe Global Positioning System (GPS), GLONASS, Gallileo, Beidou, COMPASS,IRNSS, and QZSS.

The term “smart grid” refers to an electrical grid which includes avariety of operational and energy measures, including one or more ofsmart meters, smart appliances, renewable energy resources, and energyefficiency resources. Electronic power conditioning and control of theproduction and distribution of electricity can be important aspects ofthe smart grid. A common element to most definitions is the applicationof digital processing and communications to the power grid, making dataflow and information management central to the smart grid.

The term “smart meter” is usually an electronic device that recordsconsumption of electric energy in intervals of an hour or less andcommunicates that information at least daily back to the utility formonitoring and billing.

The preceding is a simplified summary of the disclosure to provide anunderstanding of some aspects of the disclosure. This summary is neitheran extensive nor exhaustive overview of the disclosure and its variousaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations. It is intended neither toidentify key or critical elements of the disclosure nor to delineate thescope of the disclosure but to present selected concepts of thedisclosure in a simplified form as an introduction to the more detaileddescription presented below. As will be appreciated, other aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure are possibleutilizing, alone or in combination, one or more of the features setforth above or described in detail below. Also, while the disclosure ispresented in terms of exemplary embodiments, it should be appreciatedthat individual aspects of the disclosure can be separately claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an REV and charging segment accordingto an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a distributed processing network forREV charging;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a control system according to anembodiment;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of logic for the grid load availability evaluatoraccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of logic for the grid load availability evaluatoraccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of logic for the vehicle tracker and analyzeraccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of logic for the vehicle router according to anembodiment;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart of logic for the switching fabric according to anembodiment;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an REV and charging segment accordingto an embodiment;

FIGS. 10A-10E show various cross sectional views of charging segmentsaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of logic for the switching fabric according toan embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an REV charging system according toan embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing an charging segment subsystemaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing an REV charging system according toan embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing an charging segment subsystemaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 16 is a block diagram depicting electrical energy transfer betweenvehicles;

FIG. 17 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a machine to performoperations described in this disclosure;

FIG. 18 is a flow chart of logic for setting prices for powercontributions to and removals from the grid; and

FIG. 19 is a flow chart of logic for setting prices for powercontributions to and removals from the grid.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to FIG. 1, a rechargeable electric vehicle or REV 100 isdepicted in electrical communication with a roadway-based chargingsystem. The rechargeable electric vehicle 100 includes a rechargeableenergy source 104 (such as a rechargeable electricity storage system(RESS)) in electrical communication with a rectifier 108 and secondarypickup coil 112 and an electric drive motor 116. The secondary pickupcoil 112 can be fixed or stationary on the REV or movable to decreasethe air gap between the secondary pickup coil and the roadway surface. Asmaller air gap is typically optimal for efficient inductive powertransfer (“IPT”) to substantially minimize spreading and leakage or themagnetic field. The second coil can be powered automatically to loweritself when an activated charging segment is sensed or the vehiclestops.

The electrical grid 120, such as a smart grid, provides electricalenergy to a power inverter 124, which changes direct current (DC) toalternating current (AC) and supplies the AC electrical energy to acharging segment 128. The AC electrical energy typically is in the rangeof from about 15 to about 40 Hz at a frequency of from about 10 to about30 kHz. The AC electrical energy passing through the primary coil of thecharging segment 128 induces a variable magnetic field. The variablemagnetic field, in turn, induces an electric current in the secondarypickup coil 112. The induced AC electrical energy and voltage are thenrectified to DC electrical energy to charge the rechargeable energystorage 104. DC electrical energy is provided by the rechargeable energystorage to the electric drive motor 116. For optimal power transfer atthe resonance frequency, the primary and secondary coils should bepositioned and aligned precisely, with gap size restrictions to limitlosses. A closed circuit is used to contain magnetic flux and preventstray magnetic field emissions.

The charging segment 128 can have many different configurationsdepending on the application and locations. The charging segmenttypically includes a primary coil embedded in a roadway. It can have ormore power lines with electrical energy flowing in opposing directionsto form a loop. The primary coil in the charging segment can be circularor rectangular while the secondary pickup coil can be a circular ordouble sided coil or single-sided polarized coil with an additional coilfor enhanced performance for high power transfer. The secondary pickupcoil can include a rectangular core plate to provide potentially highercoupling factors and large lateral tolerances.

Exemplary charging segment 128 cross-sections (normal to a length of thecharging segment) are shown in FIGS. 10A-E. With reference to FIG. 10A,the charging segment includes magnetic components (typically typicallyiron or an iron alloy) 1000 to direct the magnetic field flux asdesired, conductors 1004 to conduct AC electric current, and signaltransceivers 1008 to emit and receive wireless signals, all positionedunderneath the roadway surface 1012. Other configurations are shown inFIGS. 10B (“S” shape), 10C (“E” shaped), 10D (“I” shaped), and 10E(box-shaped). As will be appreciated, other configurations are possible,including H-shaped, T-shaped, C-shaped, D-shaped, and the like.

The charging segment can be located at locations where REVs stop, suchas intersections having stop signs or stop lights, bus stops, parkingplaces, roadside pull outs, and the like, and where REVs are in motion,such as in the middle of roadways traveled by REVs. Special REV charginglanes can be employed. Alternatively, the charging segments can beembedded in the roadway traveled by REVs and non-REVs, such as vehiclespowered by internal combustion engines.

The charging segment length can vary from about 1 meter to 1 kilometeror more depending on the application and the duty cycle required torecharge the battery of an REV.

Both active and passive shielding can be employed to address safety,health, and environmental issues from stray electromagnetic energy orinterference. For instance, magnetic shielding can be positioned underthe primary coil to prevent electromagnetic interference to and fromnearby sources.

The REV 100 further includes a transceiver (TX/RX) 132 in signalcommunication with a controller 136. The transceiver 132 emits a signalindicating to a transceiver 140 that an REV is approaching that requirescharging. The signal can include a variety of information, includingidentity regarding the owner or operator of the REV 100 (for billingpurposes), residence, account, and other information of the REV owner(so that the power transferred can be billed to the owner's utilitybill), type of REV 100 (e.g., type of REV 100 (such as fire fighting,law enforcement, medical, or other emergency vehicle, roadwaymaintenance vehicle, commercial vehicle, and/or non-commercial vehicle)and/or priority level of REV 100 (fire fighting, law enforcement,medical, and other emergency and roadway maintenance vehicles having ahigher priority than commercial and/or non-commercial vehicles), makeand/or model of the REV 100, current charge level of the rechargeableenergy storage 104, current charging requirement of the rechargeableenergy storage 104, destination of the REV (such as from an on boardnavigation system), spatial location of the REV 100 relative to thecharging segment 128 (e.g., spatial coordinates of the vehicle relativeto a satellite positioning system such as GPS), an electronic calendarof the operator, a normal schedule for the operator, and number ofoccupants. The received signal is provided, by the transceiver 140, to acontroller 144. The controller 144, when the REV 100 requires charging,enables or activates the charging segment 128 when the REV 100 passes afirst predetermined position or location relative to the chargingsegment 128 and deactivates the charging segment 128 when the REV 100passes a second predetermined position. The controller 144 can alsoprovide the received information to a control system 200 discussedbelow.

When no or an improper signal is received by the receiver 140 or whenthe REV is not spatially aligned with the axis of the primary coil, thecontroller 144 does not enable or activate the charging segment 128 eventhough a vehicle is detected. The spatial alignment and proximity of theREV to the charging segment can be determined by any technique,including by a vehicle detection sensor (not shown) (such as a videoimage processor, infrared detector, ultrasonic detector,microwave/millimeter wave radar, passive acoustic detector array,piezoelectric sensor, photoelectric detector, spread spectrum widebandradar, inductive loop detector, magnetic detector, accelerationdetector, and a roadway ground pressure detector). In one configuration,the charging segment is activated automatically when a secondary pickupcoil of an REV is sensed a determined or selected distance above theroadway surface, such as when a secondary pickup coil is loweredautomatically from beneath the REV to a position closer to the roadwaysurface.

The duration and magnitude of the AC electrical energy passed throughthe charging segment can depend on a number of factors. These factorsinclude, without limitation, one or more of make and/or model of the REV100, current charge level of the rechargeable energy storage 104,current charging requirement of the rechargeable energy storage 104,destination of the REV (such as from an on board navigation system), andnumber of occupants. For REVs requiring less charge to recharge therechargeable energy storage 104, for example, less AC electrical energyis passed through the charging segment compared to an REV requiring morecharge to recharge the rechargeable energy storage 104.

The transceiver 140 can emit or broadcast a homing (e.g., RF signal tobe received by the transceiver 132 to indicate not only a relativeorientation of the secondary pickup coil 112 to the charging segment 128to enable the REV operator to maneuver the secondary pickup coil intoproper alignment with the charging segment 128 but also to prompt thecontroller 136 to emit the signal referenced above to the controller144. The received signal strength of the homing signal indicates arelative distance of the secondary pickup coil to the charging segment.

The REV can detect the position of the primary coil in the chargingsegment by sensing a magnitude of the emitted magnetic field. This canbe done by a gaussmeter and other well known magnetic field sensors.When the sensed magnitude is greatest, the secondary pickup coil isaligned properly with the charging segment.

The REV can detect the position of the primary coil in the chargingsegment by sensing the presence and/or magnitude of a weak magneticfield emitted by the charging segment when not actuated fully. In otherwords, a small electric current can be passed through the primary coilor through a separate coil during REV discovery of the spatial locationof, and alignment with, the primary coil and charging segment. Theelectric current is significantly less than, and more typically no morethan 50% of, the magnitude of the electric current passed through theprimary coil during REV charging. When the vehicle is properly alignedwith the primary coil axis and charging is triggered due to REVproximity to the primary coil, the larger magnitude electric current ispassed through the primary coil to cause the charging segment to emit astrong magnetic field and accompany flow of power.

The REV itself, rather than the control system, can command the chargingsegment to be fully activated as the REV passes over and is in properposition relative to the charging segment. This can be done by the twocontrollers 136 and 144 communicating with one another.

Precisely controlling when the charging segment is activated fully canbe important not only for safety reasons. If the magnetic field emittedby the charging segment misses the REV's secondary pickup coil, themagnetic field can attach to parts of the REV or attract stray metallicobjects. Nor is constant fully magnetic field emission by the chargingsegment energy-efficient.

The REV and charging segment can provide bidirectional energy flow. FIG.9 depicts an REV capable of providing, via WPT, electrical energy fromthe rechargeable energy storage 104 to the grid 120. The REV includes,in addition to the components of FIG. 1 (now shown in FIG. 9), a powerinverter to convert DC electrical energy into AC electrical energy, anda primary coil 904 to conduct AC electrical energy and emit a magneticfield. The charging segment can include, in addition to the componentsdescribed above, a secondary pickup coil 908 in which the magnetic fieldcan induce an AC electrical current and a rectifier that can convert theAC electrical current into DC electrical current to feed back to thegrid 120. The REV can generate electrical power through one or more ofregenerative braking, an on board internal combustion engine (as in thecase of a hybrid EV), and/or photovoltaic energy from solar panelspositioned on an exterior of the vehicle.

FIG. 2 depicts a distributed processing network according to anembodiment.

With reference to FIG. 2, the REV charging system 200 includes sensors204 a-m, power grid 120, charging segments 128 a-z, REVs 100 a-n, andcontrol system 208 with attached database 212, all interconnected bynetwork 216.

The sensors 204 can be any sensor desirable for an application includingwithout limitation vehicle sensors (discussed above), electrical currentsensors (to confirm when electrical current is flowing through eachcharging segment), voltage sensors (where the electrical current timesvoltage times time interval provides the amount of electricity consumedby a selected REV during charging at a specific charging segment), awatt-hour meter to determine the amount of electricity used by an REVduring charging at a specific charging segment), smart meters, and thelike.

Referring to FIG. 3, the control system 208 includes a grid loadavailability evaluator 300, a vehicle tracker 304, a vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308, a switching fabric 312, anotification module 316, a vehicle analyzer 320, a vehicle router 324,and a communication interface 328, connected by a bus or wireless and/orwired network 332.

The grid load availability evaluator 300 communicates with the grid 120to determine an amount of electrical energy that can be used for REVcharging during a selected time interval. The grid 120 provides thisestimate using current power consumption levels by non-REV users andhistorical power consumption levels. Factors considered include thepower consumed over a selected time interval on the current day of weekin prior years, the power consumed over a selected time interval on thecurrent type of day (e.g., business day, weekend, holiday, etc.) inprior years, historic power consumption over the selected time intervalfor current or predicted weather patterns (e.g., precipitation,temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, etc.), type of powerconsumers (e.g., business vs residential users), current day, time ofday during the selected time interval, type of current day, trafficlevels (to estimate a number of REVs on the roadways) over the selectedtime interval, number of REVs currently being tracked, and the like.

In some applications, REV users can reserve an amount of charge inadvance of receiving the charge. The reservation can simply specify thatthe REV will need a charge, an amount of charge required, and/or acharging segment(s) to be used for charging along with a time-of-day forthe charge to occur. Such users are normally given priority to REV userswith no advanced reservation—or REV users simply making a demand forcharging due to a current level of on board energy storage charge.

The vehicle tracker 304 identifies REVs that have signaled informationto charging segments (as noted above) and tracks the last knownpositions of the REVs based on the information and/or periodic locationsignals received from the tracked REVs. This control system can use thisinformation to load balance REV charging loads on selected chargingsegments by routing REVs to other less used charging segments.

The vehicle bidirectional load balance mechanism 308 determines orestimates a power contribution to the grid 120 from REVs wirelesslypower transferring electrical energy from on board rechargeable energystorage 104 to charging segments acting as secondary pickup coils. Theestimation over the selected time interval considers factors such as REVpower contributions to the grid over a selected time interval on thecurrent day of week in prior years, REV power contributions to the gridover a selected time interval on the current type of day (e.g., businessday, weekend, holiday, etc.) in prior years, REV power contributions tothe grid over the selected time interval for current or predictedweather patterns (e.g., precipitation, temperature, humidity, wind speedand direction, etc.), traffic levels (to estimate a number of REVs onthe roadways) over the selected time interval, number of REVs currentlybeing tracked, and the like. The vehicle bidirectional load balancemechanism 308 provides the estimation power contribution over theselected time interval to the grid load availability evaluator 300 toconsider in providing an amount of power available for charging REVsover the selected time interval The load balance mechanism 308 can, atthe request of the evaluator 300, request, via the notification module316 and communication interface 328, REV users to contribute power tothe grid 120 via wireless power transfers during periods of peak non-REVpower usage.

The switching fabric 312 refers to the hardware and software used toactivate and deactivate charging segments for REV charging. As noted,the switching fabric includes switches to switch charging segments onand off, controllers and communication interfaces to receive signalsfrom vehicle sensors indicating an approaching vehicle, transceivers toreceive communications from REVs requesting a charge from a nearby orspecified charging segment, authentication and verification modules toconfirm, as a precursor for activating the charging segment, that theREV is authorized to receive charge from the charging segment (e.g., theREV is owned or operated by a person having an active utility accountand/or that the operator of the REV is an authorized person to operatethe REV, and billing modules to receive power consumption levels foreach REV charged by the charging segments, determine and bill to the REVowner, via his or her utility bill, for the consumed power, and confirmthat the REV owner or operator is current on his or her utility bills asa precursor for activating the charging segment.

The notification module 316 receives notifications and/or requests fromother system components and, using REV owner and operator records storedin the database 212, generates and transmits, via the communicationinterface 328, appropriate notifications and/or requests to REV ownersand operators via one or more communication modalities, such as texting,email, telephone call, Twitter™, Facebook™, and Flickr™.

The vehicle analyzer 320 communicates with REVs, such as throughwireless communications via a transceiver 140 of a nearby chargingsegment, to obtain information regarding one or more of identity of theowner or operator of the REV 100, residence, account, and otherinformation of the REV owner, type of REV 100 and/or (charging) prioritylevel of REV 100, make and/or model of the REV 100, current charge levelof the rechargeable energy storage 104, current charging requirement ofthe rechargeable energy storage 104, destination of the REV, purpose ofthe current travel (e.g., emergency or non-emergency), spatial locationof the REV 100 relative to the charging segment 128, an electroniccalendar of the operator, a normal schedule for the operator (e.g.,based on the day of the week such as a business day (e.g., commute toand from work), weekend activities (e.g., church attendance), and thelike), and number of occupants. The electronic calendar is accessible bythe on board controller 136 of the vehicle and can provide schedulinginformation for the operator over a selected time period. The schedulinginformation and normal operator schedule can indicate, for example,meeting times and locations, scheduled tasks and task locations, normalactivities and locations, routine operator behavior, traveldestinations, and the like. This information enables the vehicleanalyzer 320 to estimate the minimum stored charge requirements over theselected time period. The vehicle analyzer 320 determines a currentlyavailable degree of charge or currently needed degree of charge for aselected REV.

Based on this information, a (charging) priority level is assigned bythe switching fabric 312 to the REV for purposes of controlling powerconsumption levels of REV users compared to other power users of thegrid. The priority level is used by the switching fabric 312 todetermine whether an REV is eligible to receive a charge from a nearbycharging segment. If REV users as a whole are using too much power fromthe grid over the selected time interval, only REVs having a prioritylevel of at least a threshold level are entitled to receive currently acharge from the charging segment. If REV users as a whole are using toolittle power from the grid over the selected time interval, all REVs orREV's having at least a lower priority level are entitled to receivecurrently a charge from the charging segment. As will be appreciated,the priority level of an REV will change up or down over time inresponse to changes in one or more of the above variables, the availablepower for REV charging, and the number of REVs requiring charge over theselected time interval.

The vehicle router 324 receives information from the vehicle analyzer320, determines, for each roadway segment, a total number of REVs usingthe roadway segment, a number of REVs requiring charge for the roadwaysegment, and a charging capacity of the roadway segment. The chargingcapacity is a function of the number of charging segments on the roadwaysegment and a maximum power load that can be handled safely by thecharging segments. The vehicle router 324 then directs lower priorityREVs to other less used roadway segments for charging to load balanceover the entire roadway network. The destination of each REV can be usedto select an appropriate roadway segment for redirection while avoidinga substantial detour for the redirected REV. The vehicle router 324 canprovide directions to requesting REVs to charging segment locations.

The communication interface 328 can be any hardware and software tocontrol communication channels in accordance with one or more protocols.For example, it can be one or more of a parallel, serial,skew-in-parallel, unbalanced, or balanced link or interface, modem,parallel interface, memory interface, synchronous interface,asynchronous interface, and an inter-integrated circuit.

Returning to FIG. 2, the network 216 can be any wired or wireless orwired and wireless network(s), such as a wide area network defined bythe TCP/IP suite of protocols.

FIG. 12 depicts a vehicle charging subsystem 1200 that can alternativelybe a consumer or source of electrical charge. The charging subsystem1200 interfaces with the rechargeable energy source 104 and includes notonly the rectifier 108 and secondary coil 112 to receive an electricalcharge from the grid 124 but also the inverter 124 and primary coil 904to provide an electrical charge to the grid 124. The controller 136controls the switch 1204 to select which of the charge receiving andproviding circuits is active or enabled at a selected point in time.

The vehicle can further include sensor(s) 1208 to monitor on boardcharge levels and/or electrical charge flow through the currently activecircuit. In addition to one or more of the sensors 204 a-m referencedabove, the sensors 1208 can include a sensor to determine on boardcharge levels, including without limitation a state of charge gauge,voltmeter, coulomb mounting meter (which measures the charge, orcoulomb, input to, and subsequently removed from, the battery—which isaccomplished by measuring the charge and discharge current across alow-value series sense resistor between the negative terminal of thebattery and the battery-pack ground contact and the voltage drop acrossthe sense resistor is then integrated over time to provide an accuraterepresentation of the state of the battery charge), voltage-to-frequency(VFC) converter (which provides continuous integration and thereforecaptures variable and pulsed charge or discharge profiles such that thecharge and discharge activities can be converted into counts andaccumulated over time to represent the charge and discharge flow intoand out of the battery but similar results can also be achieved with anoversampled sigma-delta analog-to-digital converter), andbattery-capacity monitoring or gas gauge devices that conform to theSBS-IF requirements. A fuel gas gauge device can also responsible forother functions in the rechargeable energy source 104, such as aninterface to the lithium ion protection device for rechargeable energysource 104 safety, battery charge termination and/or cell balancing toextend battery cycle life and capacity.

Finally, the vehicle can include an on board database or computerreadable medium 1212 to contain processor instructions, historicalinformation received from the sensors, and/or operator or owner relatedinformation, such as for billing purposes. A lookup table mapping switchsetting against measured on board charge level can also be included inthe computer readable medium 1212.

The controller 136 selects between the charge receiving and providingcircuits by activating the switch 1204. The controller 136 activates theswitch 1204 to select the charge receiving circuit comprising thesecondary coil 112 and rectifier 108 in response to a signal from thetransceiver 132 (such as a gating signal from the transmitter 140 from acharging segment) and/or from a sensor 1208. The controller 136activates the switch 1204 to select the charge providing circuitcomprising the primary coil 904 and inverter 124 in response to a signalfrom the transceiver 132 (such as a gating signal from the transmitter140 from a charging segment) and/or from a sensor 1208. The gatingsignal can include not only a field containing a mode indicator whetherthe vehicle is to receive or provide a charge but also a fieldindicating when the charge is to be received or provided, such as due toproximity or position of the vehicle relative to the charging segment.The sensor signal can automatically cause selection of receiving acharge when the charge level in the rechargeable energy storage 104 isbelow a selected threshold or providing a charge when the charge levelin the rechargeable energy storage 104 is above a selected threshold.The thresholds can be included in the lookup table.

FIG. 14 shows an alternative vehicle charging system configuration 1400in which both the charge receiving and providing circuits share a commoncoil 1404, which, depending on mode selected by the controller 136, canact as either a primary or secondary coil. The former circuit isselected by the controller 136 for the charge providing mode while thelatter circuit is selected by the controller 136 for the chargereceiving mode. A further switch 1408 is provided to enable thecontroller 136 to activate both switches 1204 and 1408 to routeelectrical current received from a charging segment through therectifier 108 or electrical current to be provided to the chargingsegment through the inverter 124.

FIG. 13 depicts a charging segment subsystem 1300 that can alternativelybe a recipient or source of electrical charge. The charging segmentsubsystem 1300 interfaces with the grid 124 and includes not only therectifier 108, and secondary coil 112 to receive an electrical chargefrom the rechargeable energy source 104 of a vehicle but also theinverter 124 and primary coil 904 to provide an electrical charge to therechargeable energy source 104. The controller 144 controls the switch1304 to select which of the charge receiving and providing circuits isactive or enabled at a selected point in time.

The subsystem 1300 can include a database or computer readable medium1312 to contain processor instructions, historical information receivedfrom the sensors 204 and billing information from prior charge exchangeswith vehicles during a billing period. Charge contributions to the grid124 from a selected vehicle represents a debit to the vehicle owner'sutility account while a charge removal from the grid 124 represents acredit to the vehicle owner's utility account. The computer readablemedium 1312 can further include vehicle operator or owner and/or vehicleidentity information regarding charge providing or receivingreservations and/or appointments and/or notifications.

The controller 144 selects between the charge receiving and providingcircuits by activating the switch 1304. The controller 136 activates theswitch 1204 to select the charge receiving circuit comprising thesecondary coil 112 and rectifier 108 in response to a signal from thetransceiver 140 (such as a gating signal from the transmitter 132 froman oncoming vehicle) and/or from a sensor 204. The controller 144activates the switch 1304 to select the charge providing circuitcomprising the primary coil 128 and inverter 124 in response to a signalfrom the transceiver 1140 (such as a gating signal from the transmitter132 from an oncoming vehicle) and/or from a sensor 204. The gatingsignal can include not only a field containing a mode indicator whetherthe vehicle is to receive or provide a charge but also a fieldindicating when the charge is to be received or provided, such as due toproximity or position of the vehicle relative to the charging segment.

FIG. 15 shows an alternative charging segment configuration 1500 inwhich both the charge receiving and providing circuits share a commoncoil or charging segment 1504, which, depending on mode selected by thecontroller 144, can act as either a primary or secondary coil. Theformer circuit is selected by the controller 144 for the chargeproviding mode while the latter circuit is selected by the controller144 for the charge receiving mode. A further switch 1508 is provided toenable the controller 144 to activate both switches 1304 and 1508 toroute electrical current received from a vehicle through the rectifier108 or electrical current to be provided to the vehicle through theinverter 124.

Using the charging subsystems of FIG. 12 or 14, charge can be exchangedbetween rechargeable energy storages. For example, a first vehicle 1600can provide electrical charge to a second vehicle 1604. In other words,the first vehicle passes electrical charge from the rechargeable energystorage 104 through the inverter 124 and on board coil to the coil ofthe second vehicle. The second vehicle's on board coil then passes theelectrical current through the rectifier 108 to the rechargeable energystorage 104. The coils can be provided in any location on the vehiclesprovided that the coils can be spaced an appropriate distance from eachother. For example, the coils can be located on or projected from afront, rear, or side surface of the vehicle.

Operation of the various components will now be described.

Referring to FIG. 4, the operation of the grid load availabilityevaluator 300 will be discussed.

In step 400, the control system 208 detects a stimulus, such as passageof a selected time interval, sensor input such as an amount ofelectrical energy consumed by REV charging bypassing a selectedthreshold, a number of REV vehicles requesting charging bypassing aselected threshold, a number of REV vehicles that have received a chargesurpassing a selected threshold, a current or anticipated power demandof one or more non-REV users exceeding a selected threshold, aninterrupt message received from the grid 120, and combinations thereof.

In step 404, the grid load availability evaluator 300 evaluates currentpower load available from the grid over a selected time interval forvehicle charging. This is done by contacting a computational module inthe grid 120 that collectively monitors current energy usage for all REVand non-REV users and/or estimates future energy usage over the selectedtime interval for all REV and non-REV users and, based on priority ofthe various users and groups of users (e.g., business users, residentialusers, REV users, etc.), sets budgets for each group of users.

In step 408, the grid load availability evaluator 300, with assistancefrom the vehicle bidirectional load balance mechanism 308, evaluatesavailable power contributions from REVs to the power grid 120 over theselected time interval. As battery technology improves and smallerbattery packs can power cars sufficient distances, a smart grid thatoperates in this way can incentivize drivers to maintain larger on boardbattery packs and be an integral power source for the grid. This is atype of crowd source “funding”, or power transfer, to the grid. Saidanother way, the collection of REVs can be thought of as one hugebattery. During peak power usage periods, the grid can draw from thathuge battery to assist non-REV power consumers. In this step, the gridload availability evaluator 300 and/or vehicle bidirectional loadbalance mechanism 308 determines one or more of an amount of electricalenergy so far contributed by REV WPT to a charging segment over theselected time interval, a number of REV vehicles notifying a planned WPTto a charging segment over the selected time interval, a number of REVvehicles that have so far transferred WPT to a charging segment over theselected time interval, a historic amount of electrical energycontributed by REV WPT to a charging segment over similar time intervalsin the past, and the like. The grid load availability evaluator 300 thenestimates a likely amount of WPT to be provided by REVs over theselected time interval.

The grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehicle bidirectionalload balance mechanism 308 can use price-indexed historic amounts ofelectrical energy contributed by REV WPT to the charging segments oversimilar time intervals in the past or other historical data to predictthe likely amount of WPT to be provided by REVs over the selected timeinterval. As will be appreciated, REV operators can be paid for WPTpower contributions to the grid. As in the case of peak and non-peakpower usage, the price paid by the grid (e.g., power utilities) for WPTpower contribution to the grid can be higher during peak power usage andlower during peak power usage periods. Conversely, REV operatorsreceiving WPT power from the grid can be charged higher rates duringpeak power usage periods and lower rates during non-peak power usageperiods. The price paid by the grid to REV operators for powercontributions is directly proportional to the amount of powercontributed by REV operators; that is, a higher price paid to REVoperators by the grid will cause REV operators to contribute more powerto the grid while a lower price paid to REV operators by the grid willcause REV operators to contribute less power to the grid.

The grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehicle bidirectionalload balance mechanism 308 can alternatively or additionally bestatistically-based, rule-based, case-based, neural network-based, oremploy any other technique for reasoning under uncertainty.

The grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehicle bidirectionalload balance mechanism 308 can set a price paid to REV operators toyield a selected or desired amount of power provided by REV operators tothe grid. When the desired power level is received from REV operators,the price can be lowered, even though the grid may still be in a peakpower usage period. The price offered to REV operators can be broadcastto REV operators via the notification module 316 and communicationinterface 328 and/or controllers/transceivers 144/140 of the chargingsegments.

The price paid by the grid to REV operators for grid power contributionsand by REV operators to the grid for grid power removals can be handledby the power grid 120 by many techniques. Using REV owner or operatoridentification information received from REV controllers/transceivers136/132 or by the notification module 316 via communication interface328, the power grid 120 can bill the REV owners or operators as part ofhis or her existing utility bill or separately.

To further influence REV operator behavior during peak power usageperiods, routing of power contributing REVs to charging segments cantake preference over routing of power consuming or receiving REVs tocharging segments to further encourage REV operators to transfer powerto the grid. Likewise, during non-peak power usage periods, routing ofpower consuming REVs to charging segments can take preference overrouting of power contributing REVs to charging segments to encourage REVoperators to receive power from the grid.

In step 412, the grid load availability evaluator 300 sums the budgetedpower load for REV charging received from the grid 120 in step 400 andthe estimated amount of WPT from REV users during the selected timeinterval as the total power from the grid allocated for REV charging.

In step 416, the grid load availability evaluator 300 determines anamount of electrical energy so far consumed by REV charging over theselected time interval, a number of REV vehicles requesting chargingduring the selected time interval, a number of REV vehicles that havereceived a charge during the selected time interval, a historic amountof electrical energy consumed by REV charging over similar timeintervals in the past, and the like. The grid load availabilityevaluator 300 then estimates a likely amount of total power to beconsumed by REV charging over the selected time interval.

With reference to FIG. 5, the further operation of the grid loadavailability evaluator 300 will be described.

In step 500, the grid load availability evaluator 300 determines thetotal power from the grid allocated for REV charging.

In step 504, the grid load availability evaluator 300 compares thelikely amount of total power to be consumed by REV charging over theselected time interval against the total budgeted power load for REVcharging from step 500.

In decision diamond 508, the grid load availability evaluator 300determines whether or not there is a shortfall, meaning that thebudgeted power load for REV charging is less than the estimated amountof total power to be consumed by REV charging over the selected timeinterval.

In step 512 when there is a shortfall, the grid load availabilityevaluator 300, in step 512, notifies the vehicle bidirectional loadbalance mechanism 308 to request REV users, via the notification moduleand communication interface, to request REV users to WPT electricalenergy to charging segments, refrain from charging REVs, and/or ofincreased prices for WPT charging by REVs during the selected timeinterval. Higher priority or level REV users can be treated differentlythan, or receive different notifications than, lower priority or levelREV users. The grid load availability evaluator 300 can also oralternatively request further power from the grid 120.

In step 516 when there is no shortfall but an excess (meaning that thebudgeted power load for REV charging is more than the estimated amountof total power to be consumed by REV charging over the selected timeinterval), the grid load availability evaluator 300 notifies the vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 to request REV users, via thenotification module and communication interface, to request REV users toWPT electrical energy to charging segments, charge REVs, and/or ofdecreased prices for WPT charging by REVs during the selected timeinterval. Higher priority or level REV users can be treated differentlythan, or receive different notifications than, lower priority or levelREV users. The grid load availability evaluator 300 can also oralternatively notify the grid 120 of lower estimated power consumptionfor REV charging over the selected time interval so that the grid 120can use a portion of the budgeted power for REV charging for othernon-REV users.

In some applications, charging rationing measures may be implemented.Even for REVs having a higher charging priority level, a maximum allowedcharge to be provided by all charging segments to a selected REV,maximum percentage of charge required by on board energy storage of anREV, or other cap on an amount of charge that can be provided by thecharging segments to a selected REV can be mandated to conserve powerthroughout the charging segments.

With reference to FIG. 6, the operations of the vehicle tracker 304 andvehicle analyzer 320 will be discussed.

In step 600, the control system selects an REV for analysis. Theselection can be done based on REVs currently in operation. These can beidentified by the REV logging into the network as part of the sequenceof activating the vehicle. It can also be done in response to the REVrequesting permission to be charged by a charging segment or attemptingto reserve a charging segment for charging. As noted, a transceiver at acharging segment can receive REV information and forward the receivedREV information to other components in the network. Each REV, includingthe selected REV, is assigned a unique identifier by the control systemfor purposes of tracking and analysis. The unique identifier is usedglobally throughout the network for the selected REV.

In step 604, the vehicle tracker 304 determines, based on the receivedinformation, and stores a current position of the selected REV. Theposition is typically expressed as coordinates of a satellitepositioning system, such as GPS, but can be other expressions ofposition.

In step 608, the vehicle analyzer 320, based on the receivedinformation, determines a percent stored charge level(s) of the selectedREV.

In step 612, the vehicle tracker 304 and/or vehicle analyzer 320determine, based on the received information, a destination of theselected REV. This information can be obtained by accessing the on boardnavigation system of the REV and a selected destination or waypoint. Itcan also be based on historical tracking records for the vehicle. Forexample, the REV can commute between business and residence locations atapproximately the same times each business day.

In step 616, the vehicle analyzer 320 determines, based on the currentposition and destination, a current and estimates a future powerconsumption rate of the selected REV.

The vehicle analyzer 320, based on this on board energy storageinformation, can determine a remaining charge of the REV's on boardenergy storage when it reaches its destination. The remaining charge canbe used to set a level of priority to the REV for charging. When theremaining charge is negative (meaning that the REV does not havesufficient charge to reach its destination) or a very low positivenumber (meaning that the REV will have a very low level of chargeremaining at the destination), the vehicle analyzer 320 assigns a highpriority level to the REV for purposes of charging. When the remainingcharge is a moderate to high positive number (meaning that the REV willhave more than enough charge remaining at the destination), the vehicleanalyzer 320 assigns a lower priority level to the REV for purposes ofcharging.

In step 620, the vehicle analyzer 320 determines other information forthe selected REV. Such other information can include the billinginformation.

Referring now to FIG. 7, the operation of the vehicle router 324 will bediscussed.

In step 700, the vehicle router 324 selects a segment of roadway havingone or more active charging segments.

In step 704, the vehicle router 324 determines a total traffic level andREV traffic levels along the selected roadway segment. This can be doneusing REV location and destination information obtained from the vehicletracker 304 and vehicle analyzer 320.

In step 708, the vehicle router 324, based on information provided bythe vehicle analyzer 320, determines the charging needs of each REValong or approaching the selected charging segment.

In decision diamond 712, the vehicle router 324 determines whether ornot the selected charging segment is over capacity (or a selectedthreshold of charging for a selected time interval).

When the selected charging segment is over capacity, the vehicle router324, in step 716, routes the selected REV to another roadway segmenthaving less used charging segments. The routing decision can include anumber of factors, including the type of REV (e.g., law enforcement,fire, road maintenance and other emergency vehicles are given higherpriority for the selected charging segment than other types of REVs,REVs having higher charging priority levels can be given higher priorityfor the selected charging segment than REVs having a lower chargingpriority level, the destination or next waypoint of the REV and thedistance of other charging segments from its path of travel (e.g., thedelay caused by re-routing the REV), the current spatial position of theREV relative to the selected charging segment, and the like.

When the selected charging segment is over capacity or after step 716,the vehicle router 324, in step 720, determines the available chargingcapacity on the selected roadway segment. This is used in a nextiteration of step 708. The vehicle router maintains, for each roadwaysegment and/or charging segment, an indication of a likely level of useof the charging segment by REVs for purposed of routing REVs to lessused charging segments. The level of use can be expressed in anysuitable form, such as power level likely to be consumed for chargingper unit of time, number of REVs traveling the roadway segment, and thelike. The information can be maintained in a database and/or as a mapthat can be provided to human monitors of the control system and/or REVoperators.

FIG. 8 depicts the charging operation of the switching fabric 312.

In step 800, the controller of the charging segment detects an oncomingvehicle, such as using a vehicle sensor or received wireless signal fromthe transceiver of the vehicle. Typically, the vehicle is detectedtypically when it is within less than 30 and more typically within 10seconds of passing over the charging segment.

In decision diamond 804, the controller of the charging segmentdetermines whether or not the corresponding charging segment is tocharge the vehicle. The vehicle is not charged when it is not an REV.This would not only be a waste of electrical energy but also potentiallyimpact adversely the vehicle occupants. If the vehicle is detected andit is either positively identified as a non-REV or not positivelyidentified as an REV, the vehicle is not charged. Even if the vehicle ispositively identified as an REV, the switching fabric 312 maynonetheless elect not to charge the REV by the charging segment forvarious reasons. The REV may not require a charge. This can bedetermined by the REVs controller indicating no charge is required orsimply failing to request a charge from the charging segment. Althoughthe REV may request a charge, the switching fabric 312, executinginstructions from the control system, may elect not to provide a chargedue to a low charging priority of the vehicle, charge rationing,potential overuse of the charging segment, and the like.

When the oncoming vehicle is to be charged, the switching fabric, instep 808, energizes the charging segment when the vehicle passes overthe segment.

When the oncoming vehicle is not to be charged, the switching fabric, instep 812, does not energize the charging segment when the vehicle passesover the segment.

FIG. 11 depicts an alternative operation of the switching fabric 312 fora smart grid application.

In step 1100, the controller of the charging segment detects an oncomingvehicle, such as using a vehicle sensor or received wireless signal fromthe transceiver of the vehicle. Typically, the vehicle is detectedtypically when it is within less than 30 and more typically within 10seconds of passing over the charging segment.

In decision diamond 1104, the controller of the charging segmentdetermines whether or not the corresponding charging segment is tocharge the vehicle or receive charge from the vehicle. The vehicle isnot charged or no charge is received when it is not an REV. If thevehicle is detected and it is either positively identified as a non-REVor not positively identified as an REV, the vehicle is not charged or noattempt is made to receive a charge from the vehicle. Even if thevehicle is positively identified as an REV, the switching fabric 312 maynonetheless elect not to charge the REV by the charging segment orreceive charge from the REV to the charging segment for various reasons.The REV may not require a charge from or intend to provide a charge tothe charging segment. This can be determined by the REVs controllerindicating no charge is required or will be provided or simply failingto request a charge from the charging segment and/or request that thecharging segment be prepared to receive a charge from the REV. Althoughthe REV may request a charge, the switching fabric 312, executinginstructions from the control system, may elect not to provide a chargedue to a low charging priority of the vehicle, charge rationing,potential overuse of the charging segment, and the like.

When the oncoming vehicle is to be charged or a charge is to be providedby the vehicle, the switching fabric, in step 808, configures thecharging segment as appropriate when the vehicle passes over thesegment.

When the oncoming vehicle is not to be charged or no charge is to bereceived, the switching fabric, in step 812, does not configure thecharging segment when the vehicle passes over the segment.

In other embodiments, the charging segment 128 is a utility power linethat is part of the grid. The naturally occurring electromagnetic fieldssurrounding the power line can be used by vehicles passing over theroadways to charge their rechargeable energy storage 104. The secondarypickup coil 112 of the vehicle is normally substantially normal orperpendicular to the electromagnetic field.

Other charging segment configurations can be employed. In oneconfiguration, a charging segment includes a fiber optic line embeddedin the roadway carries an intense beam of monochromatic light (or otherelectromagnetic radiation) produced by a laser device that generates anintense beam of coherent (e.g., having one wavelength) and focusedmonochromatic light (or other electromagnetic radiation) by stimulatedemission of photons from excited atoms or molecules. A photovoltaicassembly, or a semiconductor diode that converts visible light intodirect current (DC), is positioned at the charging location to convertthe coherent and monochromatic light into (DC) electrical energy. Theprocess is both physical and chemical in nature, as the first stepinvolves the photoelectric effect from which a second electrochemicalprocess takes place involving crystallized atoms being ionized in aseries, generating an electric current. Photovoltaic power generationemploys panels comprising a number of solar cells containing aphotovoltaic material. Materials presently used for photovoltaicsinclude monocrystalline silicon, polycrystalline silicon, amorphoussilicon, cadmium telluride, and copper indium gallium selenide/sulfide.The DC electrical energy is passed through an inverter as describedabove to provide electrical charge to a vehicle.

This approach can also be used to effect electrical energy transferbetween vehicles. The first vehicle 1600 comprises a laser powered by anon board rechargeable energy storage while the second vehicle 1604comprises a photovoltaic assembly that converts the received coherentand monochromatic light into DC electrical energy for storage in thesecond vehicle's on board rechargeable energy storage.

Referring now to FIG. 18, other operations of the grid load availabilityevaluator 300 and/or vehicle bidirectional load balance mechanism 308will be discussed.

In step 1800, the process logic starts when, in step 512 of FIG. 5, adetermination is made that a power saving measure is needed.

In step 1804, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 optionally retrieves relevantprice indexed historical amounts of electrical energy contributed by REVWPT to charging segments and price indexed historical amounts paid byREV operators for electrical energy received by REV WPT from chargingsegments. The price-indexed historic amounts of electrical energycontributed or removed by REV WPT to or from the charging segments oversimilar time intervals can predict the likely amount of WPT to beprovided by REVs over the selected time interval.

In step 1808, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 determines a current or futurecontext and/or state of the power or utility grid and the vehicle chargedemand (step 416 of FIG. 4). The context or state of the power orutility grid can include whether the current or future time is a peak ornon-peak power usage period for a class of power consumers (such asresidential consumers, REV consumers, commercial consumers, and thelike), current or future power load available from the grid for vehiclecharging (step 404), current or future available power contributionsfrom vehicles to the power grid (step 408), current or future power fromthe grid allocated for vehicle charging (step 412), current or futurepower output by the grid, and the like.

In step 1812, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 maps the current or futurecontext or state of the power grid and vehicle charge demand againstrules and/or historical data to set prices for REV WPT contributions tothe grid (e.g., the price/power unit paid to REV WPT powercontributions) and for REV WPT removals from the grid (e.g., theprice/power unit paid by REVs for WPT power removals).

In step 1816, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308, via the notification module316 and communication interface 328, notifies REV operators of theprices set.

Referring now to FIG. 19, yet other operations of the grid loadavailability evaluator 300 and/or vehicle bidirectional load balancemechanism 308 will be discussed.

In step 1900, the process logic starts when, in step 516 of FIG. 5, adetermination is made that a power consuming measure is needed.

In step 1904, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 optionally retrieves relevantprice indexed historical amounts of electrical energy contributed by REVWPT to charging segments and price indexed historical amounts paid byREV operators for electrical energy received by REV WPT from chargingsegments.

In step 1908, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 determines a current or futurecontext and/or state of the power or utility grid and the vehicle chargedemand (step 416 of FIG. 4).

In step 1912, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308 maps the current or futurecontext or state of the power grid and vehicle charge demand againstrules and/or historical data to set prices for REV WPT contributions tothe grid (e.g., the price/power unit paid to REV WPT powercontributions) and for REV WPT removals from the grid (e.g., theprice/power unit paid by REVs for WPT power removals).

In step 1916, the grid load availability evaluator 300 and/or vehiclebidirectional load balance mechanism 308, via the notification module316 and communication interface 328, notifies REV operators of theprices set.

The subject matter of the disclosure can be implemented through acomputer program operating on a programmable computer system orinstruction execution system such as a personal computer or workstation,or other microprocessor-based platform. FIG. 17 illustrates details of acomputer system that is implementing the teachings of this disclosure,such as operating the controller 144, controller 136, or control system208 (or a component thereof). System bus 1700 interconnects the majorhardware components. The system is controlled by microprocessor 1704,which serves as the central processing unit (CPU) for the system. Systemmemory 1712 is typically divided into multiple types of memory or memoryareas such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM) andothers. The system memory 1712 can also contain a basic input/outputsystem (BIOS). A plurality of general input/output (I/O) adapters ordevices 1708, 1716, and 1720 are present. Only three, namely I/Oadapters or devices 1708, 1716, and 1720, are shown for clarity. Theseconnect to various devices including a fixed disk drive 1728, network216, a display 1724, and other hardware components 1732, such as adiskette drive, a camera or other image capture device, a keyboard, amicrophone, a speaker, and the like. Computer program code instructionsfor implementing the functions disclosed herein can be stored in thedisk drive 1728. When the system is operating, the instructions are atleast partially loaded into system memory 1712 and executed bymicroprocessor 1704. Optionally, one of the I/O devices is a networkadapter or modem for connection to the network, which may be theInternet. It should be noted that the system of FIG. 17 is meant as anillustrative example only. Numerous types of general-purpose computersystems are available and can be used. When equipped with an imagecapturing device, a microphone and a speaker, the computer system may beused to implement a conference endpoint.

Examples of the processors as described herein may include, but are notlimited to, at least one of Qualcomm® Snapdragon® 800 and 801, Qualcomm®Snapdragon® 610 and 615 with 4G LTE Integration and 64-bit computing,Apple® A7 processor with 64-bit architecture, Apple® M7 motioncoprocessors, Samsung® Exynos® series, the Intel® Core™ family ofprocessors, the Intel® Xeon® family of processors, the Intel® Atom™family of processors, the Intel Itanium® family of processors, Intel®Core® i5-4670K and i7-4770K 22 nm Haswell, Intel® Core® i5-3570K 22 nmIvy Bridge, the AMD® FX™ family of processors, AMD® FX-4300, FX-6300,and FX-8350 32 nm Vishera, AMD® Kaveri processors, Texas Instruments®Jacinto C6000™ automotive infotainment processors, Texas Instruments®OMAP™ automotive-grade mobile processors, ARM® Cortex™-M processors,ARM® Cortex-A and ARM926EJ-S™ processors, other industry-equivalentprocessors, and may perform computational functions using any known orfuture-developed standard, instruction set, libraries, and/orarchitecture.

Any of the steps, functions, and operations discussed herein can beperformed continuously and automatically.

The exemplary systems and methods of this disclosure have been describedin relation to distributed processing networks. However, to avoidunnecessarily obscuring the present disclosure, the precedingdescription omits a number of known structures and devices. Thisomission is not to be construed as a limitation of the scopes of theclaims. Specific details are set forth to provide an understanding ofthe present disclosure. It should however be appreciated that thepresent disclosure may be practiced in a variety of ways beyond thespecific detail set forth herein.

Furthermore, while the exemplary aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations illustrated herein show the various components of thesystem collocated, certain components of the system can be locatedremotely, at distant portions of a distributed network, such as a LANand/or the Internet, or within a dedicated system. Thus, it should beappreciated, that the components of the system can be combined in to oneor more devices, such as a server, or collocated on a particular node ofa distributed network, such as an analog and/or digitaltelecommunications network, a packet-switch network, or acircuit-switched network. It will be appreciated from the precedingdescription, and for reasons of computational efficiency, that thecomponents of the system can be arranged at any location within adistributed network of components without affecting the operation of thesystem. For example, the various components can be located in a switchsuch as a PBX and media server, gateway, in one or more communicationsdevices, at one or more users' premises, or some combination thereof.Similarly, one or more functional portions of the system could bedistributed between a telecommunications device(s) and an associatedcomputing device.

Furthermore, it should be appreciated that the various links connectingthe elements can be wired or wireless links, or any combination thereof,or any other known or later developed element(s) that is capable ofsupplying and/or communicating data to and from the connected elements.These wired or wireless links can also be secure links and may becapable of communicating encrypted information. Transmission media usedas links, for example, can be any suitable carrier for electricalsignals, including coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, and maytake the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated duringradio-wave and infra-red data communications.

Also, while the flowcharts have been discussed and illustrated inrelation to a particular sequence of events, it should be appreciatedthat changes, additions, and omissions to this sequence can occurwithout materially affecting the operation of the disclosed embodiments,configuration, and aspects.

A number of variations and modifications of the disclosure can be used.It would be possible to provide for some features of the disclosurewithout providing others.

For example in one alternative embodiment, the vehicle is a vehicleother than an automobile, such as a motorcycle.

In yet another embodiment, the systems and methods of this disclosurecan be implemented in conjunction with a special purpose computer, aprogrammed microprocessor or microcontroller and peripheral integratedcircuit element(s), an ASIC or other integrated circuit, a digitalsignal processor, a hard-wired electronic or logic circuit such asdiscrete element circuit, a programmable logic device or gate array suchas PLD, PLA, FPGA, PAL, special purpose computer, any comparable means,or the like. In general, any device(s) or means capable of implementingthe methodology illustrated herein can be used to implement the variousaspects of this disclosure. Exemplary hardware that can be used for thedisclosed embodiments, configurations and aspects includes computers,handheld devices, telephones (e.g., cellular, Internet enabled, digital,analog, hybrids, and others), and other hardware known in the art. Someof these devices include processors (e.g., a single or multiplemicroprocessors), memory, nonvolatile storage, input devices, and outputdevices. Furthermore, alternative software implementations including,but not limited to, distributed processing or component/objectdistributed processing, parallel processing, or virtual machineprocessing can also be constructed to implement the methods describedherein.

In yet another embodiment, the disclosed methods may be readilyimplemented in conjunction with software using object or object-orientedsoftware development environments that provide portable source code thatcan be used on a variety of computer or workstation platforms.Alternatively, the disclosed system may be implemented partially orfully in hardware using standard logic circuits or VLSI design. Whethersoftware or hardware is used to implement the systems in accordance withthis disclosure is dependent on the speed and/or efficiency requirementsof the system, the particular function, and the particular software orhardware systems or microprocessor or microcomputer systems beingutilized.

In yet another embodiment, the disclosed methods may be partiallyimplemented in software that can be stored on a storage medium, executedon programmed general-purpose computer with the cooperation of acontroller and memory, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, orthe like. In these instances, the systems and methods of this disclosurecan be implemented as program embedded on personal computer such as anapplet, JAVA® or CGI script, as a resource residing on a server orcomputer workstation, as a routine embedded in a dedicated measurementsystem, system component, or the like. The system can also beimplemented by physically incorporating the system and/or method into asoftware and/or hardware system.

Although the present disclosure describes components and functionsimplemented in the aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations withreference to particular standards and protocols, the aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations are not limited to such standards andprotocols. Other similar standards and protocols not mentioned hereinare in existence and are considered to be included in the presentdisclosure. Moreover, the standards and protocols mentioned herein andother similar standards and protocols not mentioned herein areperiodically superseded by faster or more effective equivalents havingessentially the same functions. Such replacement standards and protocolshaving the same functions are considered equivalents included in thepresent disclosure.

The present disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations, includes components, methods, processes, systems and/orapparatus substantially as depicted and described herein, includingvarious aspects, embodiments, configurations embodiments,subcombinations, and/or subsets thereof. Those of skill in the art willunderstand how to make and use the disclosed aspects, embodiments,and/or configurations after understanding the present disclosure. Thepresent disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations, includes providing devices and processes in the absenceof items not depicted and/or described herein or in various aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations hereof, including in the absence ofsuch items as may have been used in previous devices or processes, e.g.,for improving performance, achieving ease and\or reducing cost ofimplementation.

The foregoing discussion has been presented for purposes of illustrationand description. The foregoing is not intended to limit the disclosureto the form or forms disclosed herein. In the foregoing DetailedDescription for example, various features of the disclosure are groupedtogether in one or more aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations forthe purpose of streamlining the disclosure. The features of the aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure may be combined inalternate aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations other than thosediscussed above. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted asreflecting an intention that the claims require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of a singleforegoing disclosed aspect, embodiment, and/or configuration. Thus, thefollowing claims are hereby incorporated into this Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as a separate preferred embodimentof the disclosure.

Moreover, though the description has included description of one or moreaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations and certain variations andmodifications, other variations, combinations, and modifications arewithin the scope of the disclosure, e.g., as may be within the skill andknowledge of those in the art, after understanding the presentdisclosure. It is intended to obtain rights which include alternativeaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations to the extent permitted,including alternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures,functions, ranges or steps to those claimed, whether or not suchalternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions,ranges or steps are disclosed herein, and without intending to publiclydedicate any patentable subject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A control system for a rechargeable vehiclecontrol system, comprising: a processor; and a non-transitory computerreadable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, whenexecuted by the processor, cause the processor to: identify rechargeableelectric vehicles currently using a transportation network and track alast known position in the transportation network of each rechargeableelectric vehicle; and automatically direct the rechargeable electricvehicles to one of plural charging segments in the transportationnetwork to receive a charge and balance (a) an electric load fromcharging of the rechargeable electric vehicles against (b) the availablecharging segments.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions,when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:determine, for a selected time interval, an amount of electrical energyfrom a power grid that can be used to charge the rechargeable electricvehicles by the plurality of charging segments; and regulate, viacontrolling over the selected time interval switches in thetransportation network, the electrical energy provided by the chargingsegments in accordance with the determined amount of electrical energyfrom the power grid that can be used to charge the rechargeable electricvehicles.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the determined amount ofelectrical energy from the power grid that can be used to chargerechargeable vehicles is dependent upon one or more of current powerconsumption levels by grid users other than the rechargeable electricvehicles, historical power consumption levels by rechargeable electricvehicles and/or other grid users, and the number of rechargeableelectric vehicles currently on the transportation network.
 4. Thecontrol system of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed bythe processor, further cause the processor to: communicate with each ofthe rechargeable electric vehicles to obtain information regarding oneor more of identity of the owner or operator of the rechargeableelectric vehicle, residence of the rechargeable electric vehicle owneror operator, utility account of the rechargeable electric vehicle owneror operator, type of the rechargeable electric vehicle, chargingpriority level of the rechargeable electric vehicle, make and/or modelof the rechargeable electric vehicle, current charge level of therechargeable energy storage of the rechargeable electric vehicle,current charging requirement of the rechargeable energy storage of therechargeable electric vehicle, destination of the rechargeable electricvehicle, purpose of the current travel of the rechargeable electricvehicle, spatial location of the rechargeable electric vehicle relativeto a charging segment, an electronic calendar of an operator of thevehicle, a normal schedule for the operator and number of occupants ofthe rechargeable electric vehicle; determine, for each rechargeableelectric vehicle, one or more of an amount of electrical charge storedby the rechargeable electric vehicle and an amount of charge currentlyrequired by the rechargeable electric vehicle, and direct, based on theone or more of the amount of electrical charge stored by therechargeable electric vehicle and the amount of charge currentlyrequired by the rechargeable electric vehicle, each of the rechargeableelectric vehicles to one of the charging segments to receive the charge.5. The system of claim 2, wherein the instructions, when executed by theprocessor, further cause the processor to determine a current energyusage for all grid users, including the rechargeable electric vehicles,and/or estimate future usage over the selected time interval for allgrid users and, based on different classes of grid users, set a budgetfor each class of grid users, the rechargeable electric vehicles being aclass of grid users and the budget for each class of grid users being anamount of electrical energy from the power grid that can be used by theclass of grid users over the selected time interval.
 6. The system ofclaim 5, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor,further cause the processor to: estimate available power contributionsthe from rechargeable electric vehicles via the plurality of chargingsegments to the power grid over the selected time interval and based onthe estimated available power contribution determine the budgets foreach class of grid users.
 7. The system of claim 2, wherein theinstructions, when executed by the processor, further cause theprocessor to determine an amount of electrical energy so far consumed bythe rechargeable electric vehicles over the selected time interval, anumber of rechargeable electric vehicles requesting a charge during theselected time interval, a number of rechargeable electric vehicles thathave received a charge during the selected time interval, and/or ahistoric amount of electrical energy consumed by rechargeable electricvehicle charging over a historic time interval and estimate, based onthe one or more of the amount of electrical energy so far consumed byrechargeable electric vehicles over the selected time interval, thenumber of rechargeable electric vehicles requesting a charge during theselected time interval, the number of rechargeable electric vehiclesthat have received a charge during the selected time interval, and/orthe historic amount of electrical energy consumed by rechargeableelectric vehicle charging over a historic time interval, a likely amountof power from the grid to be consumed by the rechargeable electricvehicles over the remainder of the selected time interval.
 8. A method,comprising: identifying, by a processor executing a vehicle tracker,rechargeable electric vehicles currently using a transportation network;tracking, by the processor executing the vehicle tracker, a last knownposition in the transportation network of each of the identifiedrechargeable electric vehicles; assigning a charging priority level toeach of the identified rechargeable electric vehicles based on one ormore of an amount of electrical charge stored by each rechargeableelectric vehicle and an amount of charge currently required by eachrechargeable electric vehicle, the charging priority level indicatingwhether each of the identified rechargeable vehicles is eligible toreceive a charge; comparing each of the assigned charging prioritylevels to a threshold; and directing, by a processor executing a vehiclerouter, ones of the identified rechargeable electric vehicles havingcharging priority levels that exceed the threshold to one of a pluralityof charging segments to receive a charge and balance (a) an electricload from charging of the rechargeable electric vehicles against (b) theplurality of charging segments in the transportation network.
 9. Themethod of claim 8, further comprising: determining, by the processorexecuting a grid load availability evaluator and for a selected timeinterval, an amount of electrical energy from a power grid that can beused to charge the rechargeable electric vehicles by the plurality ofcharging segments; and providing, by a switching fabric, over theselected time period the determined amount of electrical energy tocharge rechargeable electric vehicles.
 10. The method of claim 9,wherein the determined amount of electrical energy from the power gridthat can be used to charge the rechargeable vehicles depends upon one ormore of current power consumption levels by grid users other than therechargeable electric vehicles, historical power consumption levels bythe rechargeable electric vehicles and/or other grid users, and a numberof the rechargeable electric vehicles currently on the transportationnetwork.
 11. The method of claim 8, further comprising: communicating,by the processor executing a vehicle analyzer, with each of therechargeable electric vehicles to obtain information regarding one ormore of identity of the owner or operator of the rechargeable electricvehicle, residence of the rechargeable electric vehicle owner oroperator, utility account of the rechargeable electric vehicle owner oroperator, type of the rechargeable electric vehicle, the chargingpriority level of the rechargeable electric vehicle, make and/or modelof the rechargeable electric vehicle, current charge level of therechargeable energy storage of the rechargeable electric vehicle,current charging requirement of the rechargeable energy storage of therechargeable electric vehicle, destination of the rechargeable electricvehicle, purpose of the current travel of the rechargeable electricvehicle, spatial location of the rechargeable electric vehicle relativeto a charging segment, an electronic calendar of an operator of thevehicle, a normal schedule for the operator, and number of occupants ofthe rechargeable electric vehicle and determines, for each rechargeableelectric vehicle, one or more of the amount of electrical charge storedby the rechargeable electric vehicle and the amount of charge currentlyrequired by the rechargeable electric vehicle.
 12. The method of claim9, further comprising: determining, by the processor executing the gridload evaluator, a current energy usage for all grid users, including therechargeable electric vehicles, and/or estimates future usage over theselected time interval for all grid users and, based on differentclasses of grid users, setting, by the processor executing the grid loadevaluator, a budget for each class of grid users, the rechargeableelectric vehicles being a class of grid users and the budget for eachclass of grid users being an amount of electrical energy from the powergrid that can be used by the class of grid users over the selected timeinterval.
 13. The method of claim 11, further comprising: estimating, bythe processor executing a bidirectional load balance mechanism,available power contributions from the rechargeable electric vehicles tothe plurality of charging segments in the power grid over the selectedtime interval and providing the estimated available power contributionto the grid load evaluator for use in determining the budgets for eachclass of grid users.
 14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:determining, by the processor, an amount of electrical energy so farconsumed by rechargeable electric vehicles over the selected timeinterval, a number of rechargeable electric vehicles requesting a chargeduring the selected time interval, a number of rechargeable electricvehicles that have received a charge during the selected time interval,and/or a historic amount of electrical energy consumed by rechargeableelectric vehicle charging over a historic time interval; and estimating,by the processor based on the one or more of the amount of electricalenergy so far consumed by the rechargeable electric vehicles over theselected time interval, the number of rechargeable electric vehiclesrequesting a charge during the selected time interval, the number ofrechargeable electric vehicles that have received a charge during theselected time interval, and/or the historic amount of electrical energyconsumed by rechargeable electric vehicle charging over a historic timeinterval, a likely amount of power from the grid to be consumed by therechargeable electric vehicles over the remainder of the selected timeinterval.
 15. A control system for a rechargeable vehicle chargingnetwork, comprising: a processor; and a computer readable storage mediumhaving stored thereon instructions that, when executed by the processor,cause the processor to: communicate with each of plural rechargeableelectric vehicles and obtain information regarding one or more ofidentity of the owner or operator of the rechargeable electric vehicle,residence of the rechargeable electric vehicle owner or operator,utility account of the rechargeable electric vehicle owner or operator,type of the rechargeable electric vehicle, charging priority level ofthe rechargeable electric vehicle, make and/or model of the rechargeableelectric vehicle, current charge level of the rechargeable energystorage of the rechargeable electric vehicle, current chargingrequirement of the rechargeable energy storage of the rechargeableelectric vehicle, destination of the rechargeable electric vehicle,purpose of the current travel of the rechargeable electric vehicle,spatial location of the rechargeable electric vehicle relative to aselected charging segment of a plurality of charging segments in atransportation network, an electronic calendar of an operator of thevehicle, a normal schedule for the operator, and number of occupants ofthe rechargeable electric vehicle and determines, for each rechargeableelectric vehicle, one or more of an amount of electrical charge storedby the rechargeable electric vehicle and an amount of charge currentlyrequired by the rechargeable electric vehicle; and direct, based on theone or more of the amount of electrical charge stored by therechargeable electric vehicle and the amount of charge currentlyrequired by the rechargeable electric vehicle, each of the rechargeableelectric vehicles to one of the charging segments to receive a charge tobalance (a) a charging load of the rechargeable electric vehicles over(b) the plurality of charging segments.
 16. The control system of claim15, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, furthercause the processor to: regulate, via controlling over the selected timeperiod switches in the transportation network, electrical energyprovided by the charging segments in accordance with a predeterminedamount of electrical energy from a power grid that can be used to chargethe rechargeable vehicles, wherein the determined amount of electricalenergy from the power grid that can be used to charge the rechargeableelectric vehicles is dependent upon one or more of current powerconsumption levels by grid users other than the rechargeable electricvehicles, historical power consumption levels by the rechargeableelectric vehicles and/or other grid users, and a number of therechargeable electric vehicles currently on the transportation network;and determine, for a selected time period, an amount of electricalenergy from a power grid that can be used to charge the rechargeableelectric vehicles by the plurality of charging segments in thetransportation network.
 17. The control system of claim 16, wherein theinstructions, when executed by the processor, further cause theprocessor to determine a current energy usage for all grid users,including the rechargeable electric vehicles, and/or estimates futureusage over the selected time interval for all grid users and, based ondifferent classes of grid users, set a budget for each class of gridusers, the rechargeable electric vehicles being a class of grid usersand the budget for each class of grid users being an amount ofelectrical energy from the power grid that can be used by the class ofgrid users over the selected time interval.
 18. The control system ofclaim 17, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor,further cause the processor to: estimate available power contributionsfrom rechargeable electric vehicles by the plurality of chargingsegments to the power grid over the selected time interval and based onthe estimated available power contribution determine the budgets foreach class of grid users.
 19. The system of claim 16, wherein theinstructions, when executed by the processor, further cause theprocessor to determine an amount of electrical energy so far consumed bythe rechargeable electric vehicles over the selected time interval, anumber of rechargeable electric vehicles requesting a charge during theselected time interval, a number of rechargeable electric vehicles thathave received a charge during the selected time interval, and/or ahistoric amount of electrical energy consumed by rechargeable electricvehicle charging over a historic time interval and estimate, based onthe one or more of the amount of electrical energy so far consumed bythe rechargeable electric vehicles over the selected time interval, thenumber of rechargeable electric vehicles requesting a charge during theselected time interval, the number of rechargeable electric vehiclesthat have received a charge during the selected time interval, and/orthe historic amount of electrical energy consumed by rechargeableelectric vehicle charging over a historic time interval, a likely amountof power from the grid to be consumed by the rechargeable electricvehicles over the remainder of the selected time interval.